Whether challenging yourself with an advanced trail or walking a local nature route to take in your surroundings, hiking is a variable exercise with dozens of benefits both mental and physical. From shedding those few pesky pounds to helping your heart stay in beat, hiking is a healthy habit for anyone to enjoy.
Easily one of the greatest benefits of hiking is the cardio-respiratory workout. Strengthening your most precious of organs, the lungs and heart, hiking aids in those vital functions that keep us alive. Fighting off the fat by burning around 350 calories an hour, and strengthening our muscles are only the surface benefits to hiking. Lowering your risk for high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke are all positive results of just 150 minutes a week of active walking or hiking.
Lowering your risk for colon and breast cancer, hiking benefits run the entire gamut of the body. Beyond the physical, the many brilliant side effects of hiking can equally affect the mind. Reducing depression, improving the length and quality of sleep, and extending lifespans by lowering your risk of early death by nearly 40% make this an activity that’s almost too beneficial to avoid. Exercising your legs, knees and arms can fight off arthritis, or help manage an existing condition, and even aid in the recover from old injuries.
With a small investment of time, performing moderate exercise can bring a laundry list of health benefits. Fighting disease, 
weight gain and depression, all with a simple exercise. You don’t even need a mountain trail to perform your weekly walks. Cul De Sacs, city blocks, and neighborhoods can all be the staging ground for you to walk your way into a healthier tomorrow.